Background

HFCB Group Plc is an integrated financial solutions provider that is registered as a non–operating holding company (under the Banking Act Cap.488) and regulated by the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) and the Capital Markets Authority (CMA). The Group is a public limited company with interests in Banking, Property and Insurance, and is listed at the Nairobi Securities Exchange. For more information on our banking, property and insurance solutions, please visit www.hfcb.co.ke The Group has 4 main entities: HFCB Limited – Full-Service Banking, HFCB Properties Limited – Property/Real Estate Solutions, HFCB Bancassurance Intermediary – Insurance Solutions & HFCB Foundation Limited – ESG/Sustainability.

On the back of a strong growth trajectory and in a bid to power the business, HFCB Limited is looking to recruit a dynamic and results-oriented Solution Architect – Applications & Integration - Technology.

About the Role

The Solution Architect is responsible for designing, governing and assuring delivery of business technology solutions that support the Bank’s strategic objectives. The role provides end-to-end architecture leadership across application design, systems integration and digital transformation initiatives with strong focus on Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA).

Key Accountabilities

Solution Architecture & Application Design

• Define end-to-end solution architectures for banking applications and digital platforms.
• Translate business requirements into scalable technical solution designs and architecture blueprints.
• Ensure solutions meet security, scalability, resilience and performance requirements.
• Review and approve application architecture designs and technical specifications.

Integration Architecture & SOA

• Design and govern enterprise integration solutions using SOA principles.
• Develop reusable services and integration frameworks.
• Define service contracts, messaging standards and integration patterns.
• Design API-led architectures and enterprise service integrations.
• Lead migration from point-to-point integrations to SOA and API-driven architectures.

Architecture Governance

• Participate in Architecture Review Boards.
• Ensure compliance with enterprise architecture standards.
• Maintain architecture artefacts and repositories.

Security & Compliance

• Ensure designs comply with banking regulations and security standards.
• Embed security-by-design principles into all solutions.

Stakeholder Management

• Work with business, project, development and vendor teams.
• Provide technical leadership across project lifecycles.

Technology Innovation

• Evaluate emerging technologies including microservices, cloud, AI and open banking.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, Information Technology, Software Engineering or related field.
• TOGAF, Azure/AWS Architect, ITIL or related certification preferred.
• 4–8 years in enterprise application development, integration or architecture. 3+ years in solution architecture within banking or financial services.

Competencies

• Enterprise Application Architecture
• Microservices Architecture
• Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA)
• API Management
• REST and SOAP Services
• ESB and Messaging Platforms
• Event-Driven Architecture
• Core Banking and Digital Banking Systems
• Strategic Thinking
• Leadership
• Stakeholder Management
• Problem Solving
• Communication Skills

• Define end-to-end solution architectures for banking applications and digital platforms.
• Translate business requirements into scalable technical solution designs and architecture blueprints.
• Ensure solutions meet security, scalability, resilience and performance requirements.
• Review and approve application architecture designs and technical specifications.
• Design and govern enterprise integration solutions using SOA principles.
• Develop reusable services and integration frameworks.
• Define service contracts, messaging standards and integration patterns.
• Design API-led architectures and enterprise service integrations.
• Lead migration from point-to-point integrations to SOA and API-driven architectures.
• Participate in Architecture Review Boards.
• Ensure compliance with enterprise architecture standards.
• Maintain architecture artefacts and repositories.
• Ensure designs comply with banking regulations and security standards.
• Embed security-by-design principles into all solutions.
• Work with business, project, development and vendor teams.
• Provide technical leadership across project lifecycles.
• Evaluate emerging technologies including microservices, cloud, AI and open banking.

• Enterprise Application Architecture
• Microservices Architecture
• Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA)
• API Management
• REST and SOAP Services
• ESB and Messaging Platforms
• Event-Driven Architecture
• Core Banking and Digital Banking Systems
• Strategic Thinking
• Leadership
• Stakeholder Management
• Problem Solving
• Communication Skills

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, Information Technology, Software Engineering or related field.
• TOGAF, Azure/AWS Architect, ITIL or related certification preferred.
• 4–8 years in enterprise application development, integration or architecture. 3+ years in solution architecture within banking or financial services.